198 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Pub. Doc, 



had coming in, except when he got a day's work. One day 

 when talking with him I asked him how he fed this cow. 

 He told me, and I was so astonished I took her daily ration 

 and weighed it, and found it cost him over thirty-three cents 

 daily to keep the cow. His only remark when I showed him 

 the error of his ways was, " Well, by gosh, I can't see her 

 starve." The scales are the milkman's weeder. Use them 

 regularly, both for what you feed the cow and also for her 

 yield at the pail. 



I have only l>een a milk producer for a few years, l)ut I 

 hope that what few conclusions I have come to I have made 

 clear to you all. 



The Chairman. The meeting is open for any questions or 

 for discussion. These gentlemen will be glad to answer any 

 question that you may ask. 



Mr. Lyman. I want to speak of one thing. I found a 

 piece 'in an agricultural paper in regard to working salt into 

 butter with a ladle. It is certain that no one can make first- 

 class butter in that way. The butter should come in ker- 

 nels ; draw off the buttermilk, put in the salt, wash it and 

 take it out of the churn. 



Mr. Gove. Wouldn't you have to work it with a ladle 

 then? 



Mr. Lyman. No ; it is not touched with a ladle at all. 



The Chairman. I would like to inquire of Major Alvord 

 what would be the l)est method of salting butter? 



Major Alvord. I do not think one person's opinion 

 ought to weigh anything with the success of experienced 

 men. If different persons pursue different processes and 

 arrive at the same satisfactory results, I see no reason why 

 one should adopt the methods used by the other. I think 

 the butter when in the form of small kernels is in the most 

 desirable form for salting. I also have rather a prejudiced 

 bias in favor of stilting with brine instead of with dry salt, 

 and some of our most successful creameries do not use dry 

 salt at all. They simply wash their butter in a strong brine 

 and pack directly from the churn, and only that amount of 

 salt goes into the butter that the spaces in the butter as 

 packed give place for brine. 



